Royal boys rough up Tripoli, Waterloo Christian

Thursday

Feb 6, 2014 at 11:05 AM

By Joe Randleman

COLO – The Colo-Nesco boys’ basketball team used an overwhelming start to get past Tripoli by a 62-44 score Monday in Colo.

The Royals outscored the Panthers 22-8 in the first quarter. After that strong early statement, they increased their lead to 37-18 at the half and cruised to victory, improving to 13-5 overall and 11-3 in the Iowa Star Conference.

Colo-Nesco shot 45 percent from the field, 60 percent from 3-point range (6 of 10) and 67 percent from the line. The Royals finished with 17 assists on 24 field goals and racked up 37 rebounds and 11 steals.

Tanner Clatt hit 4 of 6 3-pointers and all four of his free-throw attempts, finishing with a team-high 18 points for the Royals. Clatt also had four rebounds, three steals and one assist.

Cole Ozbun added 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, two blocks and one steal. Christian Reischauer finished with nine points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block and Brady Stoeffler tacked on nine points and five assists.

Grant Tiarks put up six points, 11 rebounds, four assists, four steals and one block and Casy Angell delivered six points and four boards for the Royals.

COLO – Colo-Nesco wasn’t able to overcome a disparity in field-goal accuracy and free-throw attempts in a 61-56 loss to Don Bosco Friday in Colo.

The Royals tried 12 more field goals than the Dons, but they only made three more. Don Bosco shot at a 51-percent clip compared to Colo-Nesco’s 45-percent showing.

Don Bosco made up for Colo-Nesco’s 25-22 edge in converted field goals by hitting 12 of 19 free throws and limiting the Royals to just four attempts at the line. The Dons also had the edge from 3-point range, making five 3-pointers to Colo-Nesco’s three.

Colo-Nesco came up short despite owning a 27-17 rebounding advantage and having nine steals to the Dons’ four.

Cole Ozbun and Brady Stoeffler led a balanced Royal attack with 13 points apiece. Ozbun also had three steals and two assists and Stoeffler finished with six rebounds and four assists.

Christian Reischauer tacked on 12 points, two assists and two steals and Tanner Clatt came through with 11 points, two assists and one steal. Grant Tiarks chipped in five points, three assists and two steals and he led Colo-Nesco on the boards with 11 rebounds.

Travis Havel scored a game-high 20 points for Don Bosco and he also chipped in six rebounds, six assists, two steals and one block. Brady Thorne hit three 3-pointers and finished with 18 points and three assists, and Dalton Becker added 13 points and four rebounds for the Dons.

COLO – Things were clicking for Colo-Nesco on offense against Waterloo Christian Jan. 28 in Colo and that was enough to get the Royals a decisive 74-55 victory over the Regents.

Colo-Nesco raced out to a 12-6 lead behind the hot shooting of Cole Ozbun. The Royals built a 13-point lead at the half and Waterloo Christian never got closer than 11 points the rest of the way in an impressive Royal rout.

"We’re playing well, especially offensively," Colo-Nesco head coach Pat Wynja said. "We’re finding the open guy. Teams are finding it hard to guard us right now."

The Royals shot an impressive 58 percent from the floor. Four different Colo-Nesco players scored in double figures and the Royals assisted on 20 of 31 field goals.

Ozbun was flawless, scoring a game-high 21 points for the Royals.

Attacking the Regent defense on drives, battling inside and converting several pull-up jumpers from midrange, Ozbun went a perfect 10 of 10 from the field. He also finished the game with five rebounds, one assist and one steal.

"In practice we’re always working on our moves and trying to stay aggressive," Ozbun said. "Tonight I just was feeling the vibe and my shots happened to fall."

Tanner Clatt added 16 points, two assists and two steals and Brady Stoeffler had 13 points, four assists and three rebounds. Christian Reischauer was also in double figures with 10 points and he added seven assists, six rebounds and two steals.

Garret Tiarks chipped in eight points off the bench and Grant Tiarks put up four points, 6 rebounds and four assists. Zach Jamison tacked on two points for Colo-Nesco.

Wynja did say his team needs to perform better defensively as it chases the ISC championship. Waterloo Christian hurt Colo-Nesco on the offensive glass, finishing with 13 offensive boards.

"We’re finding that we are defending a lot more possessions because we’re getting so many more on offense," Wynja said. "Our defense isn’t terrible, but we can definitely improve."